Electrical connector



Feb. 23, 1960 H, D, CRANE 2,926,329

ELECTRICAL CONNECTOR Filed Aug. 26, 1955 INVENTOR /z Hem# cran@Y ELECTRICALA CONNECTOR Hewitt D. Crane, Princeton, NJ., assignor to AMP Incorporated, a'corporation of New Jersey Application August 2 6, 1955, Serial No; 530,676- z Claims. (Cl. 339-198) This invention relates to a multi-contact electrical con nector and in particular to such a connector which serves also as a mechanical fastener. 1 i

An object of this invention is to` provide anY electrical connector for making a multitude of connectionsbtween electrical conductors. Another object is to provide such a connector which is small insize, inexpensive and yetis very efficient electrically and mechanically.

A further object is to provide a connector which can be coupled and uncoupled easily and' with light force and which is therefore particularly suited for use with delicate equipment and in tight crowded places.

The development of present day plug-in type electronic equipment has brought a special need for electrical connectors of small size but yet having large numbers of contacts per connector. This need has not been entirely met by connectors heretofore. Among the difficulties of previous connectors are their mechanical complexity, their large size, their resistance to coupling and uncoupling and, of course, their high cost.

A single plug-in unit of an electronic computer, for example, may require a large number of electrical contacts, perhaps a hundred or more, but yet the available space for the connector may be very small. Accordingly, the problems encountered in making the usual connector in such small size are very troublesome. Since the connector must perform with absolute reliability but yet permit the unit to be unplugged, a rugged connector block and sturdy contacts must be provided even though these tend to be large. Moreover, the contacts must have a holding force great enough to insure good electrical connection but yet this force must be small enough so that the total holding force of the many contacts in the connector is not so great that the unit or the connecor block will be damaged by the mere act of plugging it into or unplugging it from the computer. With the usual kind of connector, where the holding force per contact is F, the total holding force is simply NF where N is the number of contacts. Asa result the force F must he kept small and this requires rather complicated shapes and special sockets. The present invention seeks to provide a multi-contact electrical connector of very small size and free of the above described diiculties and complexities.

In accordance with the present invention an electrical connector having any desired number of contacts is obtained by arranging the teeth of a slide fastener or zipper into insulated sets. The number of these sets of contacts depends upon the length of the zipper and the size of its teeth. The holding force of the individual contacts is very great and this insures good electrical connections; however, these contacts are easily disengaged with only a small force by means of ordinary zipper unfastening action. That is, all contacts are made or broken one at a time so that the maximum force that must be exerted at any time is essentially no greater than the force required to make or break any single fice 2 contact. The disconnecting force is` appliedA at right angles tothe contacts so that very little movement of the contacts Vis required. thus making possible the coupling and uncoupling of the contacts in very hard to reach places. The contacts, since they are laid out generally in a ii'at plane, are very easy to connect to respective electrical leads and are ideally suited for use with printed circuits and the like. In addition to completing electrical connections, theycan also serve to support and to hold in place the element or elements being connected in the circuit. The cost of' this connector is very small relatively speaking and it is physically very rugged and can hardly bepdamaged, quite to the contrary of ordi nary connectors. This connector can be coupled and uncoupled a multitude of times and will' remain reliable and trouble free. Moreover, it is particularly suited for use where vibration isA a problem or where great holding force for the contacts is required.

A better understanding of the invention together with a fuller appreciation of` its numerous advantages will best be gained from the following description given in teeth of the connector in Figure 1 showing how they are insulated from each other;

Referring now to Figure 1, connector 10 has a zipperlike confgurationandi includes a'number of sets 12 of contacts insulatedfrorn adjacent sets. Running to each of these sets 12 are the electrical leads required to complete the circuits from the component 15 to the component 17. As shown here, one row 18 of the teeth of connector 10 is supported by suitable insulation 20, such as cloth fabric or printed circuit board, around the four sides of component 15, which can for example oe a printed circuit. The other row 22 of teeth of connec tor 10 is supported by insulation 24 around the four sides of the opening within component 17. By disengaging one row of teeth from the other through the action of zipper slider 26, all of the connections between component 17 and component 15 can be broken and the latter can be lifted free and removed.

Figure 2 shows a greatly enlarged view of a portion of connector 10. The sets 12 of contacts make connections between the leads 27 and the leads 28. The teeth of these sets of contacts are supported on the respective insulators 20 and 24 and are insulated from adjacent teeth by means of the insulating sets 13. The teeth of sets 13, can, for example, be made of plastic, the teeth of sets 12 are, of course, made of a suitable conductor. The teeth in sets 13 and in sets 12 can he shaped the same as in an ordinary zipper and fastened together in the same fashion.

If morersets of contacts per inch are desired, it is possible to make all of the teeth of the connector conducting and to insulate them into sets by means of thin insulating layers painted on the back of every other tooth.

The above description is intended in illustration and not in limitation of the invention. Various minor changes may occur to those skilled in the art and these can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as set forth.

I claim:

l. An arrangement for holding a physically delicate electrical circuit component in its respective position in a larger assembly and for simultaneously completing a multitude of easily disconnectable electrical connections to said component, said arrangement comprising a base member having an edge and upon which at least one elec trical element is mounted, a `first row of zipper teeth mountedV upon a first strip of insulating material, said insulating material being attached to said base member along said edge, spaced ones of said zipperteeth being of conductive metal, the remaining ones of said teeth being substantially of the same shape but of non-conductive material, a plurality of electric wires each connected between said electrical element and a respective one of said spaced metal teeth, a mountingffra'me to which Said base member is to be fastened, a second 'row of zipper teeth mounted upon a second strip of insulating material, said second row of teeth being adapted to interlock with and grip in mating indentations said first row of teeth, spaced ones of said second row of teeth being of conductive metal and being positioned to engage respectively the metal teeth of said first row, the remaining ones of said second row of teeth being substantially of the same shape as said metal teeth but of non-conductive material and being positioned to engage the non-conductive teeth of said first row, a plurality of electric wires connected to the metal Ateeth of said second` row, said second strip of insulating material being attached to said frame, and a zipper slider adapted to engage Said rows of teeth to mesh or unmesh them, said slider being disengageable from one of said rows whereby said base member can be gently secured in place by the gripping action of said teeth, opposing ones of said conductive teeth will be held tightly together by the sidewise thrust of said non-conducting teeth, and said connections can be broken and said base member unfastened by moving said slider parallel to the edge of said base member, this being possible in very tight at spaces, said rst row of teeth and said first strip extending substantially 360 around the edge of said base member and cooperating with said second row and strip as the principal support of said base member.

2. A vibration-proof, simple and inexpensive arrangement for removably fastening a fragile electrical circuit component to a chassis and the like, said arrangement comprising a base member having a surrounding edge, a first multitude of electrical conductors carried on said member and extending to said edge, a frame to which said base member is to be fastened, a second multitude of electrical conductors carried on said frame, and a zipper including a slider and having a plurality of interengageable elements having mating indentations and carried on two separate insulating strips, one of said strips being aixed to said edge of said base member, the other strip being afxed to said frame, said interengageable elements being separated into interspaced conductive parts and insulating parts on each of said strips, Said conductive parts when said elements are engaged establishing a multitude of separate electric connections between said tirst and second multitude of conductors, each of said connections consisting of one of said conductive parts on one strip and another conductive part on the other strip, these being hooked into each other whereby pulling and bending of said base member after said zipper has been fastened will directly increase the contacting force of said conductive parts and said connections will not be interrupted by vibration and the like but can easily be released by the action of said Slider.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,351,803 Best June 20, 1944 FOREIGN PATENTS 235,841 Switzerland Apr. 16, 1945 351,500 Great Britain June 23, 1931 

